One of the pleasant surprises in the NBA this season has been the performance of the Minnesota Timberwolves. After a somewhat disappointing 2022-23 campaign, they have turned into one of the best teams in the league this season.
The blockbuster move they made in the 2022 offseason, acquiring Rudy Gobert from the Utah Jazz, has begun paying dividends. Having veteran Mike Conley Jr., who was acquired ahead of the trade deadline, has helped bring everything together this season.
The Timberwolves were in the mix for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for a majority of the season, but are currently 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets. They are sitting in third place, with the Oklahoma City Thunder in second.
A big reason for the recent slip is the injury to Karl-Anthony Towns. Towns injured his meniscus and has been sidelined since March 4th. There is optimism that he can return to the court during the NBA Playoffs, but it is anyone’s guess how effective he can be.
It is clear that Towns is a difference maker for this team. That is why ESPN’s NBA analyst Brian Windhorst has selected him as one of the players with the most to prove during the 2024 NBA postseason.
“Towns is recovering from a torn meniscus and it’s unclear when he’ll return. The Wolves are facing an exploding payroll, the biggest luxury taxes in team history and a new ownership group with no track record on spending. Towns has made it a priority to be a team player and support young star Edwards’ growth, but it’s unclear whether the Wolves can afford to keep him. Towns has not always played his best in the playoffs, raising the stakes for everything this spring,” wrote Windhorst.
For ownership of a team to be willing to go to where they have never been before, they need to be convinced it is worth it. Towns, who could be the odd man out with the expanding payroll, needs to prove that he is worth keeping long-term.
As Windhorst noted, the Timberwolves are now Edwards’ team and they are going to build the roster with that in mind. Towns has done a great job accepting a secondary role behind him, but things are getting expensive and he needs to prove his worth.
Speaking of Edwards, the emerging superstar will have a lot of eyes on him this postseason. How he handles that, especially if Towns isn’t in the lineup, is a reason as to why Windhorst also highlighted him as a player with a lot to prove.
“There have been a thousand “new face of the league” discussions launched this season as Edwards has, for now, replaced Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant in this conversation. The Wolves have their best team in 20 years and Edwards is their best player since Kevin Garnett. He has to back it all up with a strong showing in the playoffs to continue on this rocket ship of momentum,” wrote Windhorst.
The path to legitimate superstardom in the NBA is there for Edwards. If he can lead the Timberwolves to a playoff series win, especially if Towns isn’t available to play, his star will become even brighter.
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